Mike Wolanin | The Republic Melanie McKittrick, with Cintas, poses with a pair of the 600 steel toe boots Cintas will donate to San Souci on Friday in Columbus, Indiana. McKittrick is pictured at Cintas in Columbus on Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2023.
The local Cintas Uniform Services is donating approximately 600 pairs of new steel-toed boots of various brands to nonprofit Sans Souci in Columbus as a way to assist workers with a financial need for this safety equipment required by many industries.
The effort, which begins Feb. 17, involves both men’s and women’s boots of various sizes, is part of Cintas’ recent Columbus location decision to give away one pair for every pair it sold in December, according to Melanie McKittrick, Cintas’ catalog assistant. After it made that decision, McKittrick said the company selected Sans Souci as a partner in the giveaway because The United Way certified agency’s vision to help others matched Cintas’ mantra of preparing everyone for their work day.
They also knew Sans Souci already was providing such boots to clients needing them at their thrift store at 1526 13th St. Sans Souci either already was donating those or selling them at a very low cost to general customers.
In Cintas’ mission of preparedness, the company’s Bootmobile takes boots to its customer base by regularly visiting manufacturers such as NTN Driveshaft, Enkei America and Toyota Material Handling Inc. and providing as many as 200 pairs at a time onsite when needed.
These new boots being donated in this project are various brands and generally retail for $100 or more, organizers said.
“There is a huge need in our area among manufacturing workers for this,” said Courtney Foust, Sans Souci’s community outreach coordinator. “For some, this need can be a real barrier to their employment.”
Sharon Cutsinger understands. She needed steel-toed boots on short notice to begin a manufacturing job five years ago, but didn’t have money for such. Sans Souci gave her the footwear for free.
“Otherwise, I probably would have had to wait to start,” Cutsinger said, adding that she really needed the paycheck. “This does make a huge difference for people.”
Cutsinger is especially happy with Cintas’ donation since she now works for them.
Currently, Foust said Sans Souci gives away about a pair of such boots per day to those needing them. She added that a lot of temp agencies hiring workers refer them to Sans Souci in order to have them properly outfitted.
“The nature of especially those kinds of jobs means that many people do not even have enough time to save money for what they immediately need,” Foust said. “And that’s part of the reason why we have this program. And it’s a pretty heavily utilized.”
Foust added that some workers just landing a job after struggling financially cannot begin their work until they have the right type of protective boots. She estimated that such a large number of pairs of boots could last several months. In the past, Sans Souci has provided some needy workers with a fresh pair of steel-toed boots about every year.
“A goal for us is that something like this for workers can be one more self-sufficiency tool,” Foust said, adding that some employers eventually help to cover the cost of such a need.
Cintas has a track record of generosity, including teaming with making a huge clothes donation to Matthew 25 Ministries’ Clothe the Kids effort in Cincinnati, Ohio, where the company headquarters is based.
Check eligibility
To find out if you’re eligible for the free steel-toe boots available at Sans Souci Feb. 17, call Sans Souci at 812-372-3419, option 1.
